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Microsoft Products End-of-Life: Are You Ready?

Posted on: 22 November 2018

Microsoft will officially end its support for a number of their products on 14th January 2020 and although that date seems like a far off land at the moment, updating IT infrastructure is an extremely large task.

Today, Arc Systems are reminding their customers about this important date and advising them to put plans in place NOW for a smooth transition to make sure your company is seamlessly protected during this changeover and your infrastructure remains secure.

So do you or your business operate any of the following programmes?

• Windows 7 – One of Microsoft’s best-loved computing operating systems, with almost 40% of users still using it. However, like all operating systems before it, Windows 7 will eventually reach the end of its lifecycle, making an upgrade an essential task for the safety of your PC.

• Microsoft Exchange 2010 – Exchange Server 2010 will also reach the end of support offered by Microsoft in January 2020. If you haven’t already begun your migration from Exchange 2010 to Office 365 or Exchange 2016, now’s the time to start your planning.

• Windows Server 2008 & 2008 R2 – Support for Windows Server 2008 and 2008 R2 will also end, which means the end of regular security updates. Don’t let your infrastructure and applications go unprotected. Arc Systems will be here to help you migrate to current versions for greater security, performance and innovation.

• Windows SBS 2011 – Finally, Windows Small Business Server 2011 is being phased out by Microsoft. Arc Systems can offer you the support needed in moving your business either to the latest Microsoft Exchange, Cloud Desktop and Office 365 and now is the time to start your migration planning.

Microsoft manages the support for their products through its well established Life Cycle Policy. Generally, a product has Mainstream Support for five years after release and then moves to Extended Support for a further five years, with all support ending ten years after the release date.

When a server reaches the end of life and is no longer supported, Microsoft will no longer offer any type of support for the operating system which means:

• No security files are released and security gaps will no longer be plugged by software updates. This leaves the system vulnerable to security threats and will put your business data and networks at risk.

• No new features will be released and you will eventually start to miss out on new features which will impact on the productivity of your business. The new virtualisation features introduced in Hyper-V on the updated Winders Server 2012 and R2 systems alone may warrant an upgrade.

• You could also find that you are no longer complying with regulatory standards which require all IT products to be supported.

What does this mean for you and what should you do now?

It is now worth speaking to our expert advisors who can now begin the early stages of a migration strategy. A large number of businesses will need to replace servers by the deadline and this task requires a great deal of investigation and planning to minimise downtime during the process.

We will be encouraging all our customers, who are affected by these changes, to begin to think about this process over the coming months, but why don’t you contact us today for a chat about how we can help your company plan a well-managed and timely transition?

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Arc Systems was incorporated in 1992 and has since established itself as an experienced and respected Managed IT consultancy, offering cost effective solutions to its customers in the areas of IT support, Managed Security, Managed Backup, Cloud Services and Internet Connectivity. Arc continually strives to provide the highest level of service to each of its customers by offering a personal range of in-house expertise, tailored to each business' specific needs.